Chapter 155 – Midday (below)

This period of Nanqing was very harmonious. The palace newborn a little prince, this is a happy event, as for Mei Fei exactly how to die, no one dares to open the mouth to discuss, that the palace to receive the birth of the steady woman, very natural because of Mei Fei difficult labor and died with the funeral, is also a matter of course.

Now the Qing dynasty is in the north of the army, the country is tense, a unification of the world to set the foundation of the day, which someone will have the courage to say that three or two offenses prohibited sentence, not afraid of those in the darkness of the inner court eunuchs and ascetics to a report?

But a few days, Mei Fei things will fade, Kyoto re-emerged as a good piece of the moon and autumn deep, a clear.

The northern war is still lingering. Winter snow is approaching, South Qing’s offensive has not weakened, all the way straight to the north, close to the North Qi people set up twenty years of Nanjing defense line. It is just a pity that the Uesugi Tiger, who has been staying in the Song state capital, after getting the full trust of the Emperor of Northern Qi, has pressed his troops with unusual indifference, and has been wedged in the waist and abdomen of the Qing army’s marching road, which has made the Qing military incomparably fearful.

Shi Fei went to the north after all, because of the tightness of the war. Kyoto slightly solemn, this once single person to conquer the northern battalion of Yanjing old general, was sent to the north by his majesty, auxiliary Wang Zhikun marshal, responsible for the northern expedition matters. Famous generals are like redheads, and I’m sure Shi Fei’s heart was full of grandeur when he embarked on his journey.

Shi Fei went, the position of the commander of the Kyoto garrison division is vacant, I do not know how many attracted the military strength of the young and strong power of the burning eyes, however, His Majesty’s decree came down immediately after, suddenly put out all the extravagant hopes.

Ye Wan formally from the Privy Council staff work, in addition to the position of martial arts master, also led the Kyoto garrison division commander. Regarding this appointment, there was no one who dared to express opposition, not even the slightest opinion, because the great achievements Ye Wan had made in the western part of the empire during this year had actually fallen in the eyes of the ministers and people, and no one was able to suppress his outburst.

Decades ago, Ye Wan’s father, Ye Chong is in the very young, served as the commander of the Kyoto garrison division, now the wind and water turn, and then transferred to his not favorite son, but in the eyes of outsiders, the so-called general’s tiger son, a government pillar, but so.

In the midday of late autumn, the cold sunlight sprinkled on Ye Wan’s plain light armor. This young general’s brows were slightly wrinkled as he lightly clamped his horse’s belly and walked slowly outside of the Zheng Yang Gate in Kyoto. His eyes were slightly narrowed, constantly brushing over the people passing by, like a falcon looking for its prey in the vast grassland.

In fact, this was just a subconscious reaction of his true inner emotions, he did not have the luxury of being able to meet that little Lord Fan here, he was just a little eager to meet that legendary figure. Although His Majesty had strictly ordered that if he saw Fan Xian, he must take three steps back first, but how could Ye Wan be willing to do so?

In the open late fall sky, the cold sunlight transformed into countless straight or curved rays. Ye Wan’s eyes narrowed even more, his slightly dark cheeks, the corners of his eyes squeezed out a few wrinkles that didn’t match his age, as he silently thought in his mind about the conversation he had with His Majesty in front of the Taiji Hall that day, his emotions unusually complex.

Why did you choose to carry out the Northern Expedition in the fall, weren’t you worried about the prolonged winter that was about to come? This was a question that the Northern Qi monarchs and ministers were greatly puzzled by, and it was also the concern of the Southern Qing ministers. However, once His Majesty’s strict decree was issued, the whole world danced for it, and the warhorses galloped on the road to invade the Northern Dynasties, so no one dared to ask more questions. The strangest thing was, knowing that the timing of this war was not right, but none of the Privy Council under Ye Chong’s command, the most knowledgeable of the war’s important ministers of the Qing military, chose to advise His Majesty.

“Thousands and tens of thousands of sons and daughters have gone forward and set foot on the road of no return just to force him to show himself.” Ye Wan rode on his horse, slightly lowering his head as if trying to avoid the not-so-blazing sunlight, a faintly astringent smile spreading from the corner of his lips. He didn’t understand why His Majesty valued Fan Xian so highly, and even more so, he didn’t understand whether it was right or wrong for His Majesty to make the sons and daughters of the Qing Kingdom pay such a great price in order to bait Fan Xian.

While General Ye Wan was having a sighing heart, he didn’t know that the objects he was bent on pouncing on, the two people Emperor Qing was most worried about on this continent, had already passed through the city gates and returned to Kyoto. Only the city gate that those two people had gone through was not the Zhengyang Gate.

The midday sunlight was that clear and diffuse even at the western city gate. In the busy flow of people coming and going in Kyoto, there were two figures that were not easy to attract attention, one was wearing ordinary cloth clothes and the other was wearing a hat.

Fan Xian, who had made some small disguises, subconsciously inclined his head to look at Wu Zhu beside him at the moment he stepped into Kyoto. The wide hat hat blocked all the black cloth on Wuzhu’s face in the shadows, so no one should be able to find anything strange.

Many years ago, Ye Qingmei brought the childish-faced Five Bamboo to Kyoto in the Kingdom of Qing with a flourish like a tourist, she walked through the gates of Kyoto guarded by Ye Chong, beat Ye Chong into a pig’s head, and then began to assist a man who had begun his dramatic life.

Today, Fan Xian took the apathetic Five Bamboo and quietly returned to the Kyoto of Qing, avoiding the Zheng Yang Gate guarded by Ye Wan himself, and merged into the crowd like two ghosts, ready to begin to end that man’s dramatic life.

Thus began, thus ended, it seemed to be a perfect cycle.

When Fan Xian and Wu Zhu returned to Kyoto, the war in the north was still going on, but some days had passed since Princess Mei’s death. Although Fan Xian was now a traitor to the Qing Empire and had been stripped of all official positions and power, he still possessed his own extremely strong intelligence channels, and in an inn in Kyoto, he closed his eyes, pondered the reasons for Mei Fei’s death, analyzed his own calculations, and his mood gradually grew heavy.

In the following days, Fan Xian disguised himself as the most common green-clothed boy in Kyoto, and wandered between the various mansions and among the tea stores in the streets and alleys, not looking for anyone he knew, because he did not want to be shouted at by ten thousand people, he was just carefully looking for something.

He was looking for the chest, that heavy chest. On that wintry day when the assassination attempt failed and he was besieged by the Qing army on top of the square in front of the palace, he heard the sound of the chest ringing out, and he also knew that his majesty had almost died under that heavy sniper.

If he was able to retrieve the chest, perhaps the later things would be much simpler. Just whose hands would the case be in? This question should have been asked to Wuzhu most simple and clear, however nowadays Wuzhu is just a pale and indifferent piece of paper that remembers nothing and cares about nothing, he just subconsciously followed Fan Xian out of the temple and began to wander and roam around in the world outside of this temple to feel and experience ……

During those days, for the safety of his family and for that tacit understanding with His Majesty, Fan Xian did not return to the Fan Mansion, and he searched for traces in the vicinity of the Plucked Star Building, meditating on who would have the greatest trust from Uncle Five Bamboo …… other than himself. However, his thoughts fell into the wrong area, how did not think to that woman’s body, so this search seems to be so wandering, all directionless, straight want to cry out on the streets of Kyoto in the late fall.

After all, he is now a common enemy of the entire South Qing court, in the seemingly peaceful, no war flavor, but in fact has begun to seep out of the solemn atmosphere of Kyoto, the primary task is to live, cover their tracks, he even the old subordinates of the Supervisory Yuan do not dare to contact, so this search seems a bit futile.

Today’s Kyoto is already different from the Kyoto of a year ago. The Procuratorate had become a bastard child raised by his second mother, swaying in the bleak winds and rains, and if His Majesty hadn’t been completely senile, I’m afraid the courtiers would have already suggested that His Majesty simply abolish the Procuratorate.

Fan Xian used to think, he carries three treasures, is the world to go, so no matter what kind of danger encountered since the rebirth, he never really lost confidence, that is, when facing Ye Liuyun’s sword, the emperor’s old man’s finger, he still feels that he is the world’s most ruthless that person.

His three treasures are the poison crossbow, poison dagger, five bamboo uncle, but now the five bamboo uncle into an idiot look, the box is missing, what can he do?

Fan Mansion, Duke Liu’s Mansion, King Jing’s Mansion, Yan’s Mansion, Prince Heping’s Mansion, the Supervisory Court on the Tianhe Road, a government office next to the Da Lisi, a small mansion in the southern part of the city, all the places Fan Xian could possibly come into contact with had the eyes of the imperial court, and there were several times where Fan Xian came very close to colliding with the ascetics wearing the hats and hats in a dangerous and dangerous way.

Since he couldn’t figure out where the box was, he didn’t think about it. Nowadays, Fan Xian was such a ruthless person, and compared to that, determining His Majesty’s current physical and psychological condition was the most important thing.

Although there is information gathered into his hands, but he is not very trust these, because the emperor in the palace, this life is the most good is hidden fraud booby-trapped, Da Dongshan so, many times so, Fan Xian do not want to make a mistake, because he knows that the emperor emperor will never give him any opportunity to make a mistake.

It is amazing to say that the emperor and Fan Xian two actually for each other’s emotions, can not be completely sorted out, but once thinking about each other, the mood will be calm and calm down, the rest is only a kill word!

Do not have to say to people, do not have to tell the sun and the moon, kill each other, seems to have become the two of them live in the world of some kind of spiritual support. Have to say, this is really a rather sad thing.

To get the truest situation in the palace, Fan Xian in the inn after thinking for a long time, chose the Ye family. The Ye family was loyal, Ye Chong was the main envoy of the Privy Council, and Ye Wan was the commander of the Kyoto guard division. His Majesty trusted them beyond measure, so naturally he would not send any more eyes to monitor them.

Nowadays, there were not many places in the world that could stop Fan Xian’s infiltration, so when Ye Ling’er, who had a worried face, suddenly saw a green-clothed boy appearing in front of her like a ghost, her face changed dramatically. However, this tiger daughter of the general’s family, after all, was not a weak woman, and actually did not make a sound to call out to someone, but instead, her face sank, and she directly drew her saber from her waist, and cut down without hesitation!

“It’s me.” Fan Xian opened his mouth to call out, a tired smile spreading across the corners of his lips.

“It’s you?” Ye Ling’er looked at his unfamiliar face with disbelief, unable to speak for a long time, she simply hadn’t thought that this young master was still alive, that he was actually able to come back alive from the temple.

After a conversation, Fan Xian tiredly lowered his head. It seemed that His Majesty’s body was really failing, and from the death of Concubine Mei, and from the royal family’s arrangements for that young prince, his heart moved slightly, and he grasped His Majesty’s mind and mood with exceptional accuracy.

It was a faint implication of old age. It seemed that having suffered heavy blows from his closest son’s subjects one after another, His mighty Majesty, not only physically, but also spiritually, had fallen into the lowest period of his life.

Just why would His Majesty choose this time to start the Northern Expedition? Was it because he felt that his time was running out, so he wanted to seize the moment?

In order to bring His Majesty down, Fan Xian had not hesitated to use his gun and his sword and his human heart, and had done everything he had practiced in his two lifetimes to shamelessly think, using the world as a threat and holding the people hostage before he finally succeeded in creating the situation at hand. His Majesty was old, emotional, and naturally weak, and this was the situation he had been most looking forward to seeing. But why was there not the slightest emotion of joy in Fan Xian’s heart at this time?

Fan Xian was more than not joyful, instead he was more than a little perplexed, he sat in the chair in front of Ye Ling’er, his two feet on the chair surface, his hands clasping his knees, his face pressed against his legs, silently engaged in thought, giving off an unusually tired feeling.

When Ye Ling’er saw this gesture of his, her eyes slightly lit up, after which they swiftly turned into a thick, melting sadness, because she remembered someone, and perhaps it was precisely because she remembered someone that she didn’t ask Fan Xian where that other person was right now.

The sun gradually shifted to the west, a piece of twilight reflected in the leaf mansion, Ye Wan sullen face stepped into the back garden. I don’t know whether it was because of the tense war in the north, or whether the whole Kyoto was on guard against that person’s return, the palace didn’t strictly order him to go out of the capital to return to the camp, instead, His Majesty left an oracle, letting him follow the government to see things.

Father Ye Chong should still be in the Privy Council to analyze the military report, the formulation of strategy, I am afraid to stay up all night again. Ye Wan did not have the slightest envy and indignation, because now he knows better than anyone else, this time although the Northern Expedition has broken out, but it is impossible to end in a short period of time, because this Northern Expedition there is still an extremely important purpose has not been achieved.

It was also because Ye Chong was not in the mansion, so Ye Wan’s footsteps instead seemed a little lighter. His relationship with his father had always been extremely poor, or else he wouldn’t have stayed in Nanzhao for so many years, and even the people of Kyoto had almost forgotten about his existence.

However, Ye Wan’s relationship with Ye Ling’er was extremely good, perhaps because the brother and sister hadn’t seen each other for many years, instead they appeared to be extraordinarily close.

Ye Wan was prepared to go to the back garden to take a look at his sister, so he did not bring any of his ministerial guards with him. However, once he entered the back garden, the first thing he saw was not his sister’s figure, but a green-clothed boy.

The green-clothed boy was hunched over, humbly bowed, and prepared to leave.

Ye Wan’s eyes, however, narrowed, because in the moment he entered the garden, he had already noticed that this surprisingly ordinary-looking green-clothed boy had a questionable ying in the orientation of his two feet.

This is extremely subtle place, the green-clothed boy’s two feet seem to be casual, in fact, Ye complete clear, only need this person’s back foot a movement, the whole person will be able to light up. Of course, this was a skill that could only be possessed by experts who had reached their level.

Was he too vigilant? The cold light in Ye Wan’s narrowed eyes gradually condensed as he looked at the back of the green-clothed boy who brushed past him and suddenly opened his mouth to ask, “Why did you come back?”

The figure of the green-clothed boy was slightly stunned and slowly stopped in his tracks, then he turned around unusually calmly and looked at this young master of the Ye Mansion, asking with great interest, “Ye Finish? This can also be seen through by you, although it was due to my carelessness, but you are really …… good.”

When Fan Xian had an unexpected encounter with Ye Wan in the Ye Mansion, Five Bamboo, who had entered the capital with him, was wearing that large hat and wandering around Kyoto. Regarding the present-day Five Bamboo, Fan Xian had long ago lost track of what words to use to describe his frustrated feelings. This black-clothed, perpetually fifteen-year-old teenage Jedi powerhouse had not only lost his memories, but had even forgotten much of the knowledge required to survive in the world.

For as many days as Fan Xian stayed in Kyoto, Five Bamboo stayed by the window of the inn, and although the black cloth covered his eyes, Fan Xian always felt as if he could see the longing and curious gaze in his eyes.

Five Bamboos remained silent, remained silent, like a walking pale machine that only subconsciously followed Fan Xian’s footsteps. Fortunately, what Fan Xian was best at in his life was dealing with idiotic children, Dabao was coaxed extremely well by him, and Five Bamboos was no exception, and nothing went terribly wrong on this journey.

The only thing is that the body that seems to have lost its soul always makes Fan Xian’s heart ache, so later he stopped preventing Wuzhu from wandering out of the inn. To be honest, he couldn’t stop it either, as long as Wuzhu could remember the way back to the inn in the end. Fan Xian did not worry about Wu Zhu’s safety either, because in his opinion, no one in the world could harm him nowadays.

However, Fan Xian seemed to have forgotten that the current Five Bamboos was just like an ignorant and curious child, and even more troubling was the fact that there wasn’t even the slightest possibility of harming a human being in Five Bamboos’ brain.

So the black-clothed Five Bamboos strolled around Kyoto seemingly at ease, but in fact dangerously, he didn’t make a move, didn’t care about anything, he just watched through the black cloth, looking at this strange but familiar city.

Five Bamboo walked among the pedestrians in the streets and alleys, curiously looking at those sugar gourds, listening to the people in the tea store, enthusiastically discussing the war situation in the north, and then he walked through the long alleys, walked through the Tianhe Road, and came to the fringe of the palace square.

He curiously inclined his head and looked at the main gate of the splendid palace through the black cloth, and for some reason, a trace of unstoppable boredom grew in his icy heart.

“Pah!” A small stone hit his body, followed by more stones. The urchins in Kyoto had no idea that this man wearing a hat was the most dangerous existence in the world, desperately pelting him with rocks.

“Throw the fool! Throw the fool!”

Five Bamboos steadily remained motionless, allowing those children to throw stones as he looked at the main gate of the palace, and suddenly opened his mouth and muttered to himself, “This seems to be called the Noon Gate, and it is used to kill people.”

This was the second thing Five Bamboo said after leaving the temple without an audience. He only remembered that this place had once been called the Noon Gate, and that many people had once died here; that was a very distant story.